


Pets

by bottledyarn



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Dog(s), M/M, Pets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-11
Updated: 2011-12-11
Packaged: 2017-11-19 13:31:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/573804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bottledyarn/pseuds/bottledyarn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn and Harry discuss getting pets.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pets

**Author's Note:**

> Originally by request on my tumblr.

            “I miss having pets,” Harry said, sprawling onto his stomach on the couch. “I think we should get a pet.”

            “We should get a dog.”

            “We should get a cat.”

            They both said their opinion at the same time, and they turned to each other slowly.

            “A cat?” Zayn asked incredulously. “They’re dirty and mean!”  
            “What are you talking about? Cats clean themselves and don’t need to be walked and all that crap!”  
            “Dogs actually care about their owners,” Zayn said. “We are not getting a cat.”

            “I’ll get all the cats I want, actually,” Harry said. “Until we’re drowning in cats.”

            “That’s stupid,” Zayn said. “We just need one dog.”

            “Dogs get whiny and lonely,” Harry replied. “Cats can be solo.”

            Zayn rolled his eyes. “No matter how many cats you have, you still end up scratched up and sad.”

            “That’s ridiculous,” Harry said. “Dogs _bite_.”

            “They do not! We wouldn’t raise a crazy fighting dog.”

            “You probably want one of those bulldogs; those are gigantic and _mean_ , they’ll bite us no matter how we raise them.”           

            “Actually, I would want a German shepherd-labrador mix, and bulldogs are definitely _not_ gigantic!”  
            “German shepherd labs are!” Harry exclaimed. “Cats are small!”

            “Their attitudes aren’t,” Zayn said. “Especially those Siamese, those things are evil.”

            “I hate Siamese cats; I want an American shorthair, thank you very much.”

            Zayn stood up, wandering over to the kitchen and getting a drink. “We’re not getting a cat,” he said. “Period.”

            “Maybe I’ll get a cat when I move out,” Harry said, standing up and crossing his arms.

            “You’re not moving out…” Zayn frowned. “Are you?”

            “I might after this, you’re being stupid.”

            “You wouldn’t move out because of a pet argument!” Zayn exclaimed.  “Don’t even play.”

            “I might,” Harry said. “I really want a cat.”

            “Harry!” Zayn said. “Stop it; you know I don’t like it when you threaten me with moving out.”

            “This isn’t threatening, I’m telling you that I’m moving out,” Harry said, walking towards their bedroom. “Here I go, I’m packing.”

            He started throwing random stuff in a bag, keeping a poker face as Zayn started freaking.

            “Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it!” Zayn shouted. “You know this freaks me out, you do this every time we argue!”  
            “I’m serious this time!”  
            Zayn grabbed the bag and tossed it in the corner. “Go to bed, Harry.”

            Harry made a face and stormed into the bathroom, getting into the shower.

            Zayn sighed and went to sleep, not wanting to argue any longer. When Zayn woke up, Harry was gone- an imprint in the mattress revealed that he’d slept, however.

            Zayn pattered about, eating breakfast and trying to rationalize his insistence on getting a dog.  After about an hour, he impulsively left the apartment, barely stopping to grab his jacket.

            He found his way to the pound fairly easily, heading for the small office behind the dog cages. 

            “Do you have any American shorthair cats?” he asked the office worker.

            “Yes, actually, just one,” they said, smiling. “Really young, a boy.”

            Zayn followed them to a back room, where they scooped up a tiny yellow kitten and handed it to him.  He felt rather uncomfortable with it cradled in his hands, but as he followed them back to the front desk to adopt the small cat, it started snuggling into his palm and he almost found it cute.

            The adoption process didn’t take long, and soon enough he was headed home. He decided, once he was back in the empty apartment, that he would put a name tag on the cat. 

            He got out a piece of paper and a ribbon, scrawling ‘Gumpert’ on the paper and quickly tying it around its neck, briefly wondering if it could choke on it.  He left to get cat supplies, not wanting an accident. 

            When he got back, Harry was standing in the front room, looking rather sheepish with Gumpert in his arms. 

            “You found him!” Zayn said, putting down the supplies. “Is he the right kind?”

            “He’s perfect,” Harry said, but he didn’t look very happy. “But, um…”

            Zayn raised his eyebrows. “What?”

            A bark from one of the further back rooms revealed the reason for Harry’s bashful face.  A tiny dog raced around the corner, wagging enthusiastically. 

            The dog was a puppy, and Zayn wasn’t entirely sure what breed.

            “The pound I went to only had a golden retriever German shepherd mix…is that okay?”

            “So we have two pets now?” Zayn asked, kneeling down to pet the puppy.

            “Apparently,” Harry said, putting Gumpert down.

            “What’s…” Zayn paused to check the puppy’s sex. “Her name?”  
            “Ping…” Harry said, gesturing at her collar. “I got a tag.”

            “Aw,” Zayn said, scrubbing her ears. “Ping.”

            The cat tottered over to the dog, thumping its paw against the puppy’s face. 

            Harry reached out to grab the cat, butPingdidn’t react poorly, she just turned to Gumpert with a surprised look.

            “They like each other!” Zayn said, watching them interact. “It’s meant to be.”

            “We’re so stupid,” Harry said, moving to stand next to Zayn. “Only we could accidentally end up with two pets.”

            “I’m glad you didn’t move out,” Zayn said, looping his arm around Harry’s waist. “I wish you’d stop threatening me with that.”  
            “I’m sorry,” Harry said, turning towards Zayn so that they were chest to chest. “I just get caught up in arguments.”

            “It’s okay,” Zayn said, kissing Harry briefly, stopping whenPingbarked sharply.

            “They don’t like us kissing,” Harry said, twisting his head away from Zayn to look at the animals. “That’s too bad for them.”


End file.
